NY Times Readers Vote: Discover the Top 10 TV Shows of the 21st Century

• The New York Times released a readers’ poll of the 100 Best Shows of the 21st Century, with Breaking Bad topping the list, showcasing differences from the official countdown.
• Over 100,000 people participated in the poll, resulting in shows like Gilmore Girls, Ted Lasso, and Community making significant jumps in ranking.
• Avatar: The Last Airbender was the highest new entry at No. 37, with readers showing more love to big network shows like The Big Bang Theory and recent hits like Widow’s Bay and Heated Rivalry.

NY Times readers are making their voices heard after the newspaper released their exhaustive list of the 100 Best Shows of the 21st Century.

As with their previous lists detailing the 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century or the 100 Best Books of the 21st Century, The New York Times has unveiled a new readers’ poll counting down the greatest TV shows of the past two and a half decades.

“More than 100,000 people submitted their votes for the top series of the past 25-plus years,” the paper wrote. “Some shows made astounding leaps while others fell off the list altogether.”

As the paper indicated, there were a few key differences between the NYT‘s official countdown to the 100 best shots of the century and the readers’ poll tackling that same subject.

In particular, the readers’ poll featured slight differences in the ranking of the century’s top 10 shows, reading:

In contrast, the NY Times included the official countdown to the century’s best shows so far:

The New York Timesalso reflected on the key changes between the two lists, pointing out that certain shows like Gilmore Girls, Ted LassoandCommunity jumped ahead over 65 spots in the readers’ poll.

“The highest new entry is the beloved animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender at No. 37. Readers also gave more love to big network shows likeThe Big Bang Theoryand buzzy shows from the past year like Widow’s BayandHeated Rivalry.”

This story was originally published byParadeon Oct 2, 2026, where it first appeared in theEntertainmentsection. Add Parade as aPreferred